Much in the same way that desktops gave way to laptops, which morphed into tablets and smartphones, website home pages are being replaced with landing pages, and now those are becoming more effectively utilized as social media landing pages. How are these socially driven spots better than their predecessors?

According to the popular fashion clothesline, J.Crew, in a summary of their marketing and advertising campaign, they stated:

“We have found that J.Crew customers who engage with us via our social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or Instagram) generally spend approximately 2x more than the average J.Crew customer. Facebook is the current leading player in terms of size and time spent on site, but there are significant growth opportunities in our new visual platforms, such as Pinterest and Instagram.”

When you first start a business, every day can bring something new and innovative to your business. But what if you run a more established small business? Wouldn’t you benefit from some new ideas as well? Here are four ways you can bring innovation back to your brand.

Open Up the Floor

Don’t get the wrong idea that you as the business owner are the only one who can come up with great ideas for your company. If you’ve got staff, their ideas are often great — and sometimes better than anything you could come up with.

Hold monthly brainstorm sessions and encourage their bright ideas. Let your team know that you value their opinions, and show that by implementing some of their ideas. They’ll soon start coming to you with their thoughts, now that they know you’re really listening.

To grow, a business needs to get the word out. But to get the word out, a business needs money. Without the funds in place to launch a full-scale marketing campaign, how can an entrepreneur compete with the big dogs?

Fortunately, you don’t have to have a big marketing campaign to reach customers. There are more ways than ever to get the word out without spending a fortune. Here are a few ways you can generate buzz for your business on a limited budget.

Dispense with the Conventional

When you consider marketing options, you likely think of a few of the most popular ways to market. This includes hiring a firm, sending press releases, and deploying multiple social media updates. You should instead consider ways your brand can stand out. What unique features does your product or service have that can be used to build buzz? If you can find a way to make your social media updates stand out, you’ll be more likely to connect with customers. Continue reading “Zero Dollar Marketing—How to Build Buzz with No Money” »

One of the perks of forming a corporation in Texas, Tennessee, or any state, really, is that you have the option of issuing stock. Having stockholders can provide a much-needed cash infusion for your business.

Running a company — and therefore being in charge of people — is both a blessing and a curse. It’s a blessing because it’s fulfilling in so many ways. But it can be a challenge because every day, regardless of how you feel, you have people looking to you for guidance. You’ve got to be on your toes and ensure that you’re doing your best to lead by example so that your staff emulates what you do and works their hardest for your company.

Here are 6 tactics I’ve found effective in my leadership strategy.

Do What You Say.

I’m big on keeping my promises. Yes, I’m swamped, but when an employee asks me to do something, such as review their work or provide feedback, I make it a priority. That way, they know that my word is my bond, and that they can trust me.

Say What You Mean.

I don’t believe in pussyfooting around something. I’m always honest. I refuse to lie or even expand on the truth to an employee, because I know from experience that it always backfires. People appreciate the truth, even if it’s ugly. Continue reading “6 Ways to Lead by Example” »

I get asked a lot: does incorporating my business automatically trademark it? The fact is: being incorporated keeps anyone else in your state from using the name, but it doesn’t protect that name in the other 49 states. For that, you need a federal trademark.

First, What Is a Trademark?

You can consider a trademark any word, phrase, symbol, or design (or a combination of these) that identifies the source of a product or service and distinguishes it from competitors.

You can trademark your business name, logo, or slogan, as well as domain name (some of them, anyway) and social media usernames.

Why Trademarking Your Business Name is Worth Considering

If it’s important that you’re the only business with your name in the entire country, such as if you own a franchise in many states, or do business across borders and want to be unique, registering for US Federal Trademark protection is the best way to protect your name. Continue reading “Trademarking a Business Name: Do You Need To?” »

When trying to measure results for your marketing campaign, you have to know what to look for. Certain types of data can be extremely beneficial in helping you understand what’s working and what’s not. Here’s what you should be paying attention to.

Your Website/Blog Analytics

Understanding which pages or posts people are flocking to on your site or blog can help you understand how to continue to connect with your audience. If you sell 5 products and are seeing a flood of traffic to one particular product page, but not many sales, you know that people are interested in it, but something’s keeping them from buying. Maybe it’s the price or the purchase process. Dig deeper to get to the bottom of it so you can leverage all those website visits into sales.

In every new business venture, resources are very thin, and for this reason the decision to hire employees or outside contract workers is not an easy decision. The wrong decision can definitely lead to the failure of our project.

With this very reason in mind, I would like to share what we have learned in these past 8 years, using 3 simple and essential points, because no one expects a founder to be an expert in paying salaries and human resources.

1. What is the desired functionality?

The most important point here is determining from the beginning what is the exact work that a person will perform and taking into consideration the length of time their work will be carried out.